On August 17-23, at least 12 persons fell victim to armed conflict in Northern Caucasus

During the week from August 17 to August 23, 2015, at least 12 people suffered from the armed conflict in Northern Caucasus, including eight killed and four wounded persons. These are the results of the calculations run by of the "Caucasian Knot" based on its own materials and information from other open sources.

The death toll includes two law enforcers and three alleged members of the armed underground in Dagestan, and three civilians – two in Dagestan and one in the Stavropol Territory.

Attacks on law enforcers

On August 17, in the neighbourhood named Novy Khushet and located in the Leninsky District of Makhachkala, Shamil Abdurakhmanov, 40, a senior district policeman, was shot dead right in his office. The Investigating Committee of the Russian Federation (ICRF) has opened a criminal case under the articles of "attempt on the life of a law enforcement authority" and "illegal arms trafficking, committed by a group of persons." Under the basic version, the policeman’s work could be the reason for the murder. By August 21, the number of detainees in Novy Khushet in connection with the murder reached 12. Several residents were detained after they planted ammunition was planted on them; and their advocates cannot meet their clients, local residents report.

On August 19, on the border of the Derbent and Tabasaran Districts of Dagestan, policemen tried to stop a car for inspection. Three persons opened fire from inside the car at the police unit and were killed by response fire. Law enforcers remained safe and sound.

On August 21, Chechen operative agents arrived in Khasavyurt (Dagestan) to detain a wanted Ali Demilkhanov. The agents managed to establish the whereabouts of the militant, who was hiding in the settlement named Olympijskiy; however, the latter, armed with a pistol, opened fire on the agents wounding two of them, and managed to escape.

On August 22, in the neighbourhood Novy Khushet in the Leninsky District of Makhachkala, two unidentified men opened fire on an OMON (riot police) fighter and his relatives. Some unidentified persons called the 39-year-old police ensign out of his house. When he came out, they opened pistol fire at him, his 15-year-old son and a relative, who was also a policeman. The son and the relative died on the spot, while the ensign, the owner of the house, was hospitalized in grave condition.

Special and counterterrorist operations

On August 16, in the village of Dattykh, Sunzha District of Ingushetia, a group of 12 people was noticed, who were moved towards Bamut and entered an armed clash with law enforcers. Nobody suffered from among power agents. Within a special operation, the locality near the village was shelled; and a local resident – an 80-year-old Vakha Islamov – was wounded. According to Chechen power agents, they continue searches in the mountainous, wooded area at the junction of the Sunzha District of Ingushetia and the Sunzha and Achkhoi-Martan Districts of Chechnya.

On August 18, the counterterrorist operation (CTO) regime, which was in force since August 10, was cancelled in the Untsukul District of Dagestan. Despite the cancellation, the villages of the Untsukul District are still under a special check-and-pass regime; and there are a large number of power agents in the area, locals report. The police have confirmed that some restrictions in the area are still in force.

On August 18, the CTO regime was introduced in the Tabasaran, Khiv and Suleiman Stalsky Districts of Dagestan. Power agents are looking for members of the "southern" terrorist grouping.

On August 20, the CTO regime was introduced in the village of Chermen in the Prigorodny District of North Ossetia. During a special operation, power agents confiscated rifles, a grenade launcher and a large amount of ammunition. In the afternoon, the CTO regime was lifted.

On August 23, the CTO regime was introduced within the boundaries of the Leninsky District of Makhachkala; and a search for militants is on in several neighbourhoods; it is conducted by employees of local MIA and FSB units, and other forces.

Attacks on civilians

On August 20, Zamirbek Makhmutov, 32, a deputy Imam of the village of Irgakly in the Stavropol Territory, was found dead. He was on his way to the morning namaz (prayer) in the mosque, when he was shot dead by unidentified persons. In the opinion of Mukhammad Rakhimov, the Mufti of the Stavropol Territory, the murder of the deputy Imam is not related to his activities, since, according to his version, Makhmutov had received no threats.

On August 20, in the Gunib District of Dagestan, three unidentified masked men assassinated Magomedgadji Zaidov, the chief engineer of the agricultural firm "Sogratl". Three men armed with submachine guns, two of them in masks, broke into the house of the 53-year-old Zaidov, located in the village of Nakazukh. They locked the engineer’s wife in the house, took him to the edge of the forest, shot him dead and disappeared. It is supposed that the murder was committed by three militants, a law enforcement source has reported.

Detentions

On August 16, in the Achkhoi-Martan District of Chechnya, employees of the republic’s MIA and other law enforcement bodies detained a 24-year-old local resident, an active member of an illegal armed formation (IAF). A Kalashnikov with 20 rounds was found on him. Since 2011 the detainee had been a member of the IAF, which was a part of the so-called "Achkhoi-Martan sector" of militants’ formations.

On August 21, in Ingushetia, a 29-year-old resident of the Sunzha District was detained on suspicion of arms trafficking and helping members of the armed underground. According to the police, the suspect supplied foodstuffs to militants. He was taken to the police station.